Suddenly
by Litrouke
Summary: Hinata is summoned to a mission with Naruto, Shikamaru, and a stranger, and finds more in her teammates, including herself, than she ever expected. [ShikaHina][Songfic...ish]


**Suddenly** by Litrouke

No characters (excluding Emisa and Frowning-san) and no things belong to me.

Warnings: Light het. Light idiocy from Naruto. xP

The inserted lyrics are from a song by Superchick, called "Suddenly". (Aren't I creative with fic titles?) -gasp- And actually a fic of mine that's semi-long? No way...your eyes must be deceiving you...

* * *

"Ho-hokage-s-sama?" 

Flustered, the Hyuuga heiress peeked nervously around the edge of the door, white eyes wide. She smoothed her jacket reflexively, ignoring the slight tremble of her hands. She needed to focus, _now_, and forget the last three hours of 'training'…if performing a graceful, polite bow, smoothly pouring tea, and practicing the art of small talk thirty-eight times constituted as 'training'. Eventually, her instructor had given up; the frustrated woman sank to her knees in gratitude to the gods when a message arrived from the Hokage. Anything, she had said, anything to end this useless torture. According to Emisa-san, teaching Hinata etiquette was quite similar to trying to bathe in glass shards (or so she had continuously exclaimed during the lesson). The glass looked deceptively smooth and pure and beautiful until one felt the biting, unfixable stab of its jagged edges.

"Mm?" Tsunade didn't glance up from her sea of papers, hand scrawling her signature across the bottom of a page.

"Oh, yes…I was about….to send another…message…" the woman said distractedly. "Come in."

Hinata hurried into the room, gently pressing the door shut behind her. She snapped immediately in half, rigidly holding herself in a bow before the Hokage – she could feel her back aching against the all-too-familiar position.

"H-hai?"

The woman waved the question off quickly, gesturing to Hinata's side. Hinata straightened slowly, humble gaze still studying the floor. She peered through her bangs sideways and found herself staring up at a tall dark man. From his simple (yet effective) arrangement of armor and cloth to the hard, determined frown drawing a line across his box of a face, all Hinata could think was 'dark'. Even his hair matched, the short clipped tufts that escaped from his forehead protector bandana revealing themselves as coal-black. His impeccable posture made her self-consciously correct her own slouch though she still didn't come close to imitating him: the man reminded her of a thick, rigid pole, not even the rise and fall of his chest visible.

Though his face remained to the front, a pair of deep, brown, muddy eyes slid towards her, and caught Hinata mid-gape. She blushed, instantly, yanking her gaze away to inspect the floor once again. _He must be an amazing ninja_, she thought, her admiration tainted by a dab of bitter resentment. _I don't even know his name but I can see he must be extraordinary, just from the self-control…just from the way he holds his head up. So confident. So strong._

She risked another quick glance, relieved to find he had turned his eyes back to the Hokage. _Emisa-san would adore a brilliant student like him._

_---_

_She feels lost in her own life  
Treading water just to keep from slipping under  
And she wonders if she's where she's supposed to be  
Tired of trying to do it right  
Her dreams are just too far away to see how steps she's making might be taking her to who she'll be_

_---_

"OHAYO!!! Hinata!!!"

The sudden, boisterous crowing startled Hinata out of her brooding. She blinked, immediately recognizing the voice with a soft blush. Slowly, she leaned forward to peek past the wondrous pole-stranger. A shock of bright blonde hair emerged, the genin rocking back and forth on his heels in a grinning orange blur.

"N-Naruto-kun! …o-ohay-"

"Can we go?" the frowning stranger interrupted roughly, slaughtering her weak attempt to return Naruto's energetic greeting. "Now that everyone has arrived. _Finally_."

Hinata didn't miss the emphasis, a flush of red coloring her cheeks yet again as she mumbled a bashful apology. She had tried to hurry, but the ceremonial robes required for her formality training had to be carefully removed and folded and her hair had been tugged tight in intricate tangles of beads and ribbons and…and she really hadn't meant to take so long. Really.

"Yeah…probably should head out…" came a lazy sigh of agreement. Hinata realized with another start of surprise that there was a fourth member to the team, the lounging genius completely escaping her notice. The famed strategist slouched into view, hands tucked casually into his pockets.

"I'll explain the mission on the way, Hinata," he added with a short nod to her.

"YOSH! No more waiting! Let's go, let's GO!!"

Naruto had bounded out the door and thrown himself halfway down the stairs before the frowning ninja even had time to complete his bow to the Hokage. The man turned smartly on his heel and marched out the door in silence. Shikamaru followed at a lethargic dawdle, pausing to extend a hand, tossing it towards the door coolly. He spoke in another half-sigh, lips quirked into the slightest shadow of a grin.

"Ladies first."

Humbly, Hinata nodded and hurried out of the room. Strangely, she couldn't stop her own expression from softening into a reflection of the Nara's, a calm, quiet smile.

_---_

_And suddenly it isn't what it used to be  
And after all this time it worked out just fine  
And suddenly I am where I'm supposed to be  
__And after all the tears, I was supposed to be here_

---

"I can't believe this - getting paired with two _genin_."

"…whatever."

"'Whatever'?! How can you not be pissed about this? Feh…beyond the obvious insult to our skill level, there's the question of our safety. I mean…the mission's pretty easy, so we shouldn't have to rely on them too much, thankfully, but-"

"They're my teammates. Even if they're still genin rank…I trust them. Completely."  
"…you're joking. You can't _seriously_ mean that. Do you know who they are?"

"Of course I do. I know who they actually are, not just whatever rumors have been thrown around Konoha. If you knew them like I did, you'd feel lucky to have them in the squad."

"What is _wrong_ with you, kid? We have to deal with that freak-demon punk and then the weakest, most useless Hyuuga alive – did you know she got beat by someone from the _servant_ branch of their clan?"

"Listen: it's not 'servant'. He is not a 'freak'. And she…she's a lot stronger than _anyone_ realizes. Than even she realizes. You may have to deal with 'two genin', but the only people I have to talk to are Naruto and Hinata."

"You're insane suicidal to trust the mission to them. And you're damned suicidal to trust your _life_ to people like them."

"I'll take suicidal over stupid any day - stupid to trust my life to a gossiping idiot."

Hinata covered her mouth with a shocked gasp, eyes round as the moon. Shikamaru-kun…she could feel a tremble, not in her weak body, like usual, but a flutter in her heart. It was pumping fiercely against her chest; it seemed like it was cheering for the Nara, thanking and assuring him. The same feeling as a few months ago, when Naruto's shout had sliced through her pain and fear like a kunai, the battle with Neji transforming into a simple opportunity to prove herself.

It was different, now, but so much the same: she wanted to prove Shikamaru right, even if she knew it was impossible. Stronger than anyone realized…gods, how much she wished the genius could be completely right about that. But…how could he say that…and why, when he knew Frowning-san was right?

Weak. Useless.

(For some reason, even the insults couldn't still her pounding heart.)

_---_

_She feels locked in her own life  
Scared of what she might lose  
If she moves away from who she was  
And she's afraid of being free_

---

"Here's the deal."

Hinata jumped as Shikamaru's voice emerged from her memories to speak beside her. She blinked, dropping her hand from her mouth, praying the strategist hadn't noticed her eavesdropping. She studied Shikamaru's face through the blurred backdrop of branches and bark, the shadows of the forest dancing over the smooth skin in dappled tattoos of shade and light. Hinata mentally shook her head, focusing instead on listening to his lazy drawl (though she could hear the slight change in tone as the tense anger faded away) as the four-man squad sped through the forest.

"So there's this guy: he's kidnapped a son – a little kid – from a rich merchant family in Jogi Village. Now he's demanding payment from them to get the heir back. Of course, the family came to Konoha for help – apparently, the price is outrageous even for them," the Nara tossed a quick shrug into his explanation. "They've already managed to locate the kidnapper, and the kid, who seems unharmed. He's holed himself up in a little cave and will only allow one person to enter, or he swears he'll kill the boy."

"Right!" Naruto burst into the conversation, lunging across three trees to join them. "I have _totally_ got this in the bag! I'll beat that idiot up and save the kid and maybe these merchant people will even give us free dinner or something – ne, Shikamaru, do you think maybe they're _ramen_ merchants?" the blonde blathered with a bright, innocent grin.

"…which means that we need someone subtle and careful who can sneak the kid out," Shikamaru added dryly. "Which means…not Naruto."

Naruto scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "O-oh…yeah. Right. Well, then…um, you should go! Yup, Shikamaru, you should definitely go! And if you get caught or something, _then_ you can call me in and I'll beat the guy up!"

A tired frown spread over the Nara's face, but he managed to raise his shoulders into a small shrug for Naruto's benefit.

"Yeah…it'll probably be me…"

"Fine," the last member of the squad had found the plotting trio. "We'll stand guard on the outside…and, obviously, enter as back-up if we hear anything going wrong."

With a happy nod, Naruto bounded to a higher branch, just as Frowning-san (Hinata found she needed _something_ to address him by in her thoughts) slipped into the lower limbs. The plan settled, Shikamaru drifted away as well, intending to leave Hinata some space and silence – as much could be allowed, when one was grouped with Naruto, of course.

"W-wait! U-uh, um, wait, p-please, um, Sh-Shika-m-maru-k-k-kun…"

All three males turned, mid-jump, to stare at the trembling Hyuuga, her fists squeezed tight in determination. She forced her mouth open – once, twice, three times – before finally managing to spit her words out in a single long breath.

"PleaseShikamarukunifyoudon'tmindIthinkIshouldbetheonetogo!"

There's a way she knows is right  
And she can't feel the things she knows and so each step she's taking  
Is a step of faith towards who she'll be

Hinata held her breath, just waiting for the inevitable rejection. (_No way – you'd screw everything up! What are you thinking? You're not good enough, not strong enough, not smart enough. You're not anything, Hinata._)

Still clutching desperately to her rush of courage, she forced her eyes up to scan the group. She looked nervously from Naruto's gape of surprise, Frowning-san's expected frown of disapproval, and Shikamaru's…smile?

_Why is he…smiling…at me?_

"Fine with me," the Nara said. "It's a troublesome job, but if you really want to do it…"

"Ido!" another blurred squeak from Hinata. "I-I mean…y-yes, yes, I want to, I really d-do."

She added a hasty bob of her head to assure him. Ignoring the sounds of his teammates (a snort from one; soft, astonished mumble of "Hinata?" from the other), Shikamaru nodded and, with the same twist of his lips, that tender half-smile, said in agreement, "Ladies first."

_---_

_And suddenly it isn't what it used to be  
And after all this time it worked out just fine  
And suddenly I am where I'm supposed to be  
And after all the tears, I was supposed to be here_

---

The three men hung back while Hinata carefully approached the cave. She ducked inside, the slimy walls immediately closing around her like a tight fist of suffocation. Three steps down the winding path of the cave and the sunlight was already lost far behind her. Hinata took a deep breath and forced herself deeper into the cave. She felt naked and vulnerable without Byakugan or any genjutsu to conceal herself from the kidnapper, but Shikamaru had very specifically forbade any chakra usage. The kidnapper had guarded himself against ninja by installing several alarms that activated when they sensed chakra.

She slid one hand along the damp stone wall as she walked to orient herself. Hinata stepped as quietly as possible, the ominous silence of the cave destroyed by her pounding heart. She focused, eyes and ears straining to catch any sign of the man or child.

_---_

_And here where the night is darkest black  
She feels the fear  
And the light is farthest back_

---

Shikamaru shifted uneasily, gaze darting from the clouds to the cave to the ground to his fidgeting hands. This was a relatively simple mission…no insane enemy-nin, no huge, elaborate death traps, no murderous schemes hidden behind layers of deceit…it was very straightforward. And he trusted Hinata, right?

_I shouldn't have sent her. I should **not** have sent her- what was I thinking, what if she gets hurt, what if she gets killed, what would I say, how could I explain to the Hyuuga clan that I let their heiress run into an ambush all by herself, t hat I wasn't by her side, that I didn't protect her, what if she's already been captured or killed, what am I doing standing out here, forget the alarms I should go in and get her, oh damn damn damndamndamn!_

"Oi, Shika?"

Shikamaru jumped, tumbling off the rock he had nervously been perched on, and gasped in a breath so abruptly that he started to choke. Naruto bounded over the rock to perch at his side with wide blue eyes of concern.

"Shikamaru! Shika! Dude, what's wrong?! Are you ok?" the blonde prodded loudly, forgetting their need to remain quiet and hidden outside the cave.

He took a deep breath, siting up and waving Naruto away. "F-fine…Naruto…I'm fine."

"Oh. Ok," Naruto took a deep breath, obviously prepared to burst into a long tirade of his usual blabbering, when a louder sound slashed through the silence: an echoing shout, coming from inside the cave. All three heads shot towards the cave, all three expressions darkened by confusion. The voice had been decidedly masculine…

"That's not her-" Naruto voiced the group's thoughts slowly, but Shikamaru interrupted by leaping past the blonde in a dead-out sprint towards the cave.

"Hinata!"

The Nara crashed blindly into the cave's entrance, tripping nearly five times in a row before he found a flat surface. At once, he was off at a sprint, bouncing off walls that popped suddenly out of the gloom to halt him.

"Hinata!" he called again, all the dread and worry pushing down on him, slowly crushing his pounding heart. "HINATA!"

"H-…h-here…"

He skidded to a stop, whirling in a full circle to change direction and dart towards the weak sound. This time, his mad sprint was not blocked by a wall, but by a warm, slender body. He crashed into Hinata, realizing a second later (after her squeak of surprise) who it was, and reached out to grab her. Shikamaru caught her before she could fall, and pulled the girl back up to her feet. Unfortunately, Hinata had completely lost her balance between the collision, the slippery floor, and the impenetrable gloom of the cave, and she tottered forward too far with his helping tug…and ended up falling back into her 'savior', her arms instinctively tightening around him for support.

And, more unfortunately, her head followed the rest of her body in slinging forward, but it contacted a very different location. Somehow, her lips found his in the darkness, as both embraced each other tightly. The accidental kiss only lasted a split second before both pulled away in shock; if the cave had been lit, they would have seen identical blushes on each other's faces.

"G-g-g-g-gomen-n-na-nasai! N-Na-Naru-ruto-k-" she sputtered out breathlessly, assuming it must have been the blonde: who else would charge into the cave so recklessly, and then be clumsy enough to run into her, but her beloved kitsune?

"It's…not…Naruto," the other ninja forced out quietly, ending her stuttering. Hinata froze, in shock, the gentle, sighing voice registering easily in her mind. Shikamaru.

"Sh-Shikamaru-kun? W-what-…what…why…"

"We heard the shout."

"Oh."

"Are you alright, Hinata?" Shikamaru's voice quickened with concern, the worry overshadowing his embarrassment.

She nodded, then bit her lip in realizing that he couldn't see her. "H-hai. I'm fine."

"You're sure?"

"Hai. I found…the boy…and t-took care…of th-the, um, the k-kidnapper…"

"You're…stuttering again," Shikamaru observed quietly. "Something's wrong."

"E-er, well…n-n-not r-really, j-just…um…c-could…would you m-mind, um, well, l-letting g-g-go-"

"Oh!" Shikamaru backed away quickly, dropping his arms from their (comfortable) position wrapped around the Hyuuga girl. Thank the gods for the darkness…he imagined his blush was probably worse than hers, at the moment. "Sorry."

"I-it's…fine…" she breathed out gratefully.

"OI! HINAAATAA!" an earsplitting shout echoed through the cave, nearly shaking the walls with its energy. Shikamaru winced, before turning his head to half-heartedly yell back.

"Naruto! She's over here…everything's alright…" he announced to a relieved 'woohoo!' of victory from Naruto.

"U-um, Sh-Shikamaru-kun?"

"Yeah?" he turned his attention back to Hinata.

"Before N-Naruto-kun gets here…I wanted to…to tell you…um, th-that…that I…well, I wanted to say…th-thank you," Hinata explained timidly, almost too soft for the Nara to hear. "Thank you…for believing in me."

Shikamaru scratched the back of his neck awkwardly, before giving a quick nod. "Right. No problem. I mean…it's not like…you're not…worthy and everything, you know? Well, what I mean to say is, that, you…Hinata, you're just as good as everyone else. Better, in a lot of ways, actually, if people just took the time to look."

And even in the complete pitch-black of the cave, Shikamaru swore he could see a glint of her wide, beautiful smile as she squeaked, "Thankyou!"

_---_

_And through her tears  
She can see the dawn  
Its coming skies will clear  
And the light will find her where she's always been_

---

Shikamaru emerged from the cave first, leading the group through the winding tunnels as best as he could remember. Hinata came next, the little kidnapped boy at her side, clutching nervously to her hand as she comforted him with gentle whispers. Naturally, Naruto bounced out just a step behind her, lugging the body of the kidnapper Hinata had easily knocked out.

The older chuunin, standing guard outside, and Shikamaru exchanged quick nods – mission was successful, everyone was alright. Check, check. There was a tiny hint of surprise in the older chuunin's eyes as Hinata exited, unharmed, but he hid the emotion well enough so that only Shikamaru caught it.

"Oi, Hinata, this is amazing! You did really awesome!" Naruto crowed, exclaiming to the world her bravery and determination, much to her embarrassment.

"N-Naruto-kun, th-thank y-you, but…but r-really…it was Shikamaru-kun…f-for letting me take the m-mission," she explained humbly, white eyes darting up briefly to look at the chuunin.

Shikamaru shrugged, lazily, the touch of a blush still reddening his face. "Like I said, Hinata, there's no reason not to trust you. I knew you'd complete the mission."

Hinata flushed from the compliment, pressing her fingers together as she stared timidly at the ground. Shikamaru hesitated, emotions battling within his mind. She looked so adorable…and she really did deserve the compliments, even if she didn't realize it…

Slowly, the Nara stepped forward and slid two fingers under her chin, lifting the girl's bright red face up to look at him.

"Hinata…" he found the words slipping away as he gazed into her innocent, wide pale eyes. "I…"

Then he let the troublesome urges take over completely; it was _way_ too much effort to keep fighting the temptation. He leaned forward and pressed his lips softly against hers, the sensation from the cave far too short (yet so sweet). To his surprise, she didn't yank away or faint or slap him (maybe he was thinking too much of Ino on that one) but instead her lips parted gently and she deepened the kiss, leaning into him. Shikamaru's other arm circled around her, puling her tightly to him in the breathless kiss.

When they finally broke off, both their cheeks painted bright red and eyes wide, there was a long moment of silence.

Then, predictably, the Master of Breaking Silence swung in to rescue them; Naruto half-tackled Shikamaru, slinging one arm around to give him a friendly whack on the had.

"Shika!!! Why didn't you _tell_ me you l liked Hinata?!?" he shouted, grinning so wide that Shikamaru feared his face might crack in half. "Jeez, here I was all this time thinking you didn't even _like_ girls! You should've told me, man! …but, hey, hey- I get it now! So _that's_ why you told Tsunade-baachan that you wanted Hinata on your team instead of Neji! Dude, why didn't you tell me?"

Naruto blathered on wildly, but Shikamaru tuned it out, hearing only a quiet gasp from Hinata.

"You…asked for m-me…instead of Neji-niisan?" she whispered out in disbelief.

Shikamaru's blush had spread from his face all the way down his neck with Naruto's blabbering, but he managed a little nod to her question – still too tongue-tied to properly form an answer.

"Right. Well, not that I'm not overjoyed for you lovebirds, but if you're not going to head back in the cave to make-out or anything, I suggest we leave," Frowning-san announced dryly, eyeing the blushing pair with distaste.

"Yosh! Back to Konoha, so I can tell Sakura-chan and Ino and Kiba and Iruka-sensei and Tsunade-baachan and-" Naruto started to rail off a list of everyone who _had_ to know about the affair. Shikamaru covered his hand with his face, sighing quietly at the thought of the next few days. Still…it was probably worth it, no matter how troublesome it the rumours would be.

A little half-smile squirmed its way onto his face, and he dropped his hand to lazily smile at Hinata and toss an open hand back towards Konoha.

"Ladies first."

Hinata grinned, stepped forward, and took his hand.

_---_

_And suddenly it isn't what it used to be  
And after all this time it worked out just fine  
And suddenly I am where I'm supposed to be  
And after all the tears, I was supposed to be here_

---

* * *

This was a Christmas gift fic to Dark-chan, my roleplaying and chatting buddy. It was also a half-challenge, as I had to use Superchick lyrics and the ShikaHina pairing...Oo Considering I've never even read a ShikaHina fic before, it was quite the obstacle. I still don't think I quite support ShikaHina, but the fic was worth it just to write Naruto's lines. He's such an idiot. xP 

Please review, and I'll love you!


End file.
